Epsilon Team /Rawatbhata
The Epsilon Team was a secret society from the 1950s to 1980s, founded by Maximiani Julia Portas, that combined Greek ultranationalism, Neo-Nazism, Hellenic paganism, and UFO religion. The beliefs of the society are based around Portas’ philosophy of Occultic Nazism and Esoteric Rosenbergism, believing that Alfred Rosenberg was the Ancient Greek god Zeus in the disguise of a mortal man. The Team, consisting of mostly far-right Greek figures, believed that the Hellenic race was blessed with philosophical knowledge from ancient aliens, claiming that Aristotle was an extraterrestrial who came from the stars to enlighten mankind.
In Portas’ worldview, Jews are from a hell planet and are aligned with the Titans, with the Greek Gods fighting a war against them. The Holocaust is interpreted as Zeus attempting to cleanse the cosmos and set up a society in which Greeks will reign supreme across Europe. The epsilonists engaged in a number of acts of terrorism, bombing banks and synagogues and creating a great sense of dread throughout the country.
When Scientology first arrived in Greece, the Epsilon Team was seen as a competing force in the cult marketplace, and some of them were hunted down and murdered upon the order of L. Ron Hubbard. The Greek military had largely captured the rest of them by 1989. Still, epsilonism has greatly influenced the banned Golden Dawn political party.
The Rawatbhata incident occurred on April 26, 1986, in Rajasthan, India. The city, home to a nuclear power plant, saw a disaster when a core meltdown occur as the result of design flaws and human error, leaking massive amounts of radiation in the worst recorded nuclear disaster. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, where evacuated in nearby communities. Although few died from direct exposure, radiation continued to negatively affect the health of many who lived in the area and their descendants. Today, the Rawatbhata Zone of Abandonment exists to further protect the public. Exactly when the area will be safe again is unclear, but it will likely be hazardous for centuries if not thousands of years.
The meltdown and heroics the Indian liquidators who contained it are portrayed in the 2019 television series Rawatbhata, a joint India-United Kingdom production between the Indian Film Council and Channel 4. The series was a hit, and is credited for educating many Westerners on the tragedy. The debate over nuclear power remains strong decades after the incident. Advocates note it to be a freak accident and that nuclear is safer long-term than fossil fuels, while opponents observe the massive effects it had on India’s population, especially the poor, and the endangered wildlife.
